#sacchasks

First off, full disclosure, I avoided watching ATLA when it first came out and didn't start until just before/after the series finale. I was a bitter weeaboo who thought it was ripoff anime. Lucky for me thebiggestnerd beat some sense into me and knocked my weeaboo ass out, got me into not only western animation but western comics too. Oh, and importantly for you guys, she also got me into Homestuck.

As it turned out, I LOVED ATLA and still hold it up as a great example of awesome animation and storytelling. So yes. Now.

TRU FACTS, TLOK as a series is a bit messed up. The whole second season I just sort of want to burn off the face of the earth, and it's clear there were budgetary problems and other issues that muddled the writing. There were simply too many cooks in the kitchen at some points. (Are we doing a political fantasy thriller? Are we doing a Twilight-esque love triangle? WE JUST DON'T KNOW.) There were a lot of red-herring plotlines (General Iroh???)  and things that really should've been explored (You're -our- Avatar too!, etc)

All in all, expect it to be quite different from ATLA. If you want grand, sweeping fantasy worldbuilding and fun antics with kids, maybe give Korra a miss, especially if you're particularly attached to the world of ATLA. Korra was rooted a bit more in the real world, with historical allusions everywhere. If ATLA had some steampunk elements, TLOK is really more dieselpunk, with lots of robotics at play, and less Spirituality. (Which is funny, considering this story actually explores the spirit world more. )There's also this sort of... uncomfortable, really sad awareness about Aang being gone, and how people talk about him. Actually, most of the Gaang. It's realistic, and well-written, but at the same time it's hard to parse young, optimistic Aang with the Aang we see in Korra. It's a bit jarring, and if you're really attached to the ATLA characters, it can be kind of sad. (There's a few delightful moments too where they talk about shit Aang did that's just like GODDAMMIT, AANG. Or Sokka. I really missed Sokka this series.) It's also very... contained? We don't go to the Fire Nation at all that I remember? There's one little escapade into the desert, but for the most part it's in urban environments, which are interesting in its own regard.

ALL THAT SAID, TLOK is a hell of a fun ride, and I know marathoning it, you won't have time to stop and examine the "buh?" episodes so thoroughly and agonize over them.

The characters have a lovely growth to watch (Not just Korra, either! S1 Mako to S4 Finale Mako are literally two different people.) And fun and endearing. (Bolin isn't Sokka, but he's pretty damn cute and lovable all the same). Each of the characters- especially the villains too! Are fun to watch and get to know. No one is flawless, and their arguments and fights are really empathetically written to understand both ends.

And, of course, the action scenes are second to none. I'd even put them above the ones in ATLA. Bending has been perfected and refined and tweaked with for longer now, and styles have mixed. (See: Bolin and Mako using their bending like boxers.) I can't count the number of times I watched something happen and went "OHHH MY GODDDD THAT'S SO -COOL-." Whoever planned the battle scenes must've had a ball.

So, in a 1-10, I'd solidly put it at a 7.5. I really, really enjoyed the series, but there were definitely pitfalls, and I was fortunate that I did't have as much of an attachment to the original series to be disappointed.